194 Presidentship of Sir Joseph Banks I79 1 



some discussion which the Treasurer briefly summarised 

 thus : 



" Several members being of the opinion that the rule of admission 

 to the Club is too strict as it now stands, a motion was made that 

 an alteration do take place in respect to the number of negatives that 

 shall hereafter exclude a candidate ; and the same being put to the 

 ballot, it was resolved (n to 6) that an alteration should take place. 



" A difference of opinion arising on the question whether the 

 negatives excluding should be an absolute number (as heretofore) 

 or should bear a proportion to the number of members present at 

 the ballot ; it was resolved (n to 6) that they should bear a pro- 

 portion to the numbers present. 



" A ballot being then taken on the question whether the propor- 

 tionate numbers constituting an election should be three-fourths or 

 two-thirds of the members present, it was (12 to 5) resolved that 

 from henceforth, when the number of affirmatives upon ballot for 

 a candidate shall be to the number of three or more to one, and 

 not otherwise, the person balloted for shall be duly elected. 



" A motion was made and it was resolved (n to 4) that the hour 

 of dining be in future at 5 o'clock, instead of half-past 4 of which 

 the Treasurer is desired to give notice to the Master of the Tavern." 1 



John T. Stanley who was one of the members now added to 

 the Club succeeded to his father's baronetcy in 1807. He was 

 raised to the peerage in 1839 with the title of Baron Stanley 

 of Alderley. In 1802 he was " discontinued " as a member of 

 the Club for non-attendance, but was afterwards re-elected. 



The attendance still continued good. Henry Cavendish 

 remained at the head of the company in having attended 

 51 times, that is, he was present at every weekly 

 dinner throughout the whole year. Next to him came the 

 Treasurer with 40 attendances, A. Dalrymple with 37, the 

 President and A. Aubert with 36 and Dr. Blagden with 31. 

 Lord Palmerston found time to dine frequently with the 

 Club, sometimes taking the chair, and even the veteran Dr. 

 Heberden, in spite of his eighty years, joined his old associates 

 at the " Crown and Anchor " several times in the course 

 of the summer and autumn. It may be remarked that the 

 attendance at the end of August suddenly dropped from 



1 At this meeting, perhaps in anticipation of some difficulty about the 

 voting, Mr. Aubert presented to the Club a set of balloting balls. 



